When I first got to my summer internship at iHeartMedia, I was incredibly out of my element. I had no clue what I had stepped into, but I was sure that I was in over my head. I was convinced that the entire summer was going to be a "fake it until you make it" situation, or maybe even just treading water. I never expected what would actually happen in the three months I got to spend at this place.

The first time I heard my office referred to as a family, I had worked here for a little under a month. As soon as I heard it, I got it. There were all of the characters and personalities that you would find in a family, but multiply the size of those personalities by one hundred. Amidst all of these big personalities, I thought I would have to find a way to either carve out a space for myself or make myself smaller. What actually happened was they made room for me. They let me be exactly who I am and adopted me into their crazy family.

Over the next few months, many people took me under their wing, showing me how to put together a show, operate a soundboard, write for other people to read on air, and lots of other technical things that I would never have figured out on my own, but it became more than that. I was introduced to new people and new music. I would get texts to drive safely on my way home. I was genuinely thanked every day for the job that I was doing. I was thoroughly interrogated when I had a date as it became the talk of the office. I was bought lunch. I was adopted.

Like all families, we have our little spats here and there, but there hasn't been a day that has gone by that didn't end with "Thank you for everything you do. Drive safe, and call me if you need anything." And that to me is a family. A family is composed of all different personalities that somehow manage to coexist (mostly) peacefully under one roof. A family is the people you call if you need something. A family is who you vent to when you've had a bad day, or who you can't wait to tell a funny story to. They're the people who love you and protect you. They teach you and lead you in the way you should go.

This summer, I expected to find out if radio was something that I wanted to do for the rest of my life. It was a relatively commitment-free way to cross something off my possible jobs list if I didn't like it, or to get my foot in the door if I did like it. What I found at iHeartMedia Myrtle Beach became so much more. In such a short time, these people became my family. I never expected at the beginning of the summer to dread saying goodbye as much as I do now, but the classic quote "how lucky I am to have something that makes saying goodbye so hard" has never rang more true. So instead of a goodbye, this will be a see you later.